David Hughes joined us at our recent Townhead Apple Festival as both a storyteller and volunteer. In the story that follows, David draws on his rich experience working with children, young people, and communities, sharing a tale that brings the spirit of the festival to life and reminds us of the power of stories to uplift and unite.
A space becomes a place with the stories that we create of it. As we come to know a space, our stories are what makes it come alive: through our relationship with it. The pavement beneath the streetlamp where you had your first kiss, the little thicket where you picked brambles with your Granny, the orchard you enjoyed the sweet tang of freshly pressed apple juice beneath a September sky. We are connected to places by the stories we remember of them, the stories we tell of them. They say that people make Glasgow. The city of Glasgow is so much more than the concrete and bricks that make up the buildings, it is the people of the city that create the vibrant thrumming life force of the city
In the heart of Townhead, nestled among the high rises is an orchard. A grove of trees cared for by both people and place, these trees have been carefully pruned and mulched by kindhearted volunteers among the community, they have been sheltered from bitter winter winds by the tower blocks that stretch above. They were nourished by spring rains falling from the grey city skies, their flowers pollinated by insects thriving in the city’s green islands. Scattered summer sunlight was captured by the leaves of these trees, converted into sweet sugary energy that now hang heavy and ripe on the branches of the trees within Townhead Community Orchard: apples ripe for picking, squeezing, crunching, tasting, celebrating. The Townhead Apple Festival offered us the chance to harvest in abundance.

The sense of welcome that comes from an event like this is unparalleled. Here, it does not matter where you were born, how much money you have in the bank, what colour your skin is, who you voted for, how many years you have behind you or how many years you have ahead of you.
Amidst the chaos of apple pressing, face painting, apple tasting and apple crafting, you can hear conversations in English, Arabic and French, recipes of apple cake from the hot deserts of Morocco have found their way to the heart of Glasgow. People are added to WhatsApp groups to learn more about food sovereignty through the Glasgow Apple Pressing project. Knowledge is shared from experts around the best practice for looking after apple trees. Children are tasting different apple varieties, exploring which are sweet, which are sour, which are bitter. Others are creating little guardians to protect the orchard for the future. In the hall, we have a performance from St Mungo’s primary school, devised by the young people from this place, celebrating what they have learned about the diversity of apples.

Townhead Apple Festival represents a celebration of community and of love. We find ourselves in a time when we are seeing increased racism and violence towards migrant communities and people from different ethnic backgrounds, a time when we face growing challenges around wealth inequality and social justice. This is a time when climate breakdown and biodiversity collapse is becoming a harsh reality. We need to find time to come together, to celebrate what we have in common as well as our differences. We need community.
In 1992, Pollok Park was severed by the construction of the M77 motorway. This was the end result of nearly thirty years of resistance and protest from the local communities against the construction of the motorway. In this time, a band of resistors and defenders who spoke out against the development plans of the motorway. A protest camp took up residence in Pollok Park, dreadlocked ecowarriors and environmentalists rubbed shoulders with people in the local communities, a socially deprived area facing challenges around poverty, gangs and drug abuse. Ultimately, the resistance failed, and development won, but the repercussions of the protests were mammoth. Through connection, shared purpose and understanding, people from different backgrounds came together to protest, and, in community, they learned how to empower themselves. People learned how to speak up for injustice in the face of development.
Community greenspaces in cities, like Pollok Park, like Townhead Orchard, serve as hubs for people to come together, to share in the one thing we have in common with everyone else – nature.

We are all dependent on nature to live, we are in direct relationship with the land around us. The oxygen we breathe comes from the plant life around us, the water we drink falls from the skies, trickles down hillsides before finding its way into our bodies. The apples we consume were grown on trees planted by the hands of the people of Townhead nearly ten years ago – the orchard is a service to the community; food is a reason to gather and to celebrate.
The fruits of these trees belong to Townhead because they have been nourished by the place they find themselves in now. Our lives are sweeter for the abundance of these apple, pear and plum trees, our lives are made richer for the opportunity to come together to celebrate harvest. Our lives are made joyful by the expression of love and connection through art. Places are made through the stories we create as we relate to them. Let us celebrate that in abundance.
Eco Drama would like to thank David for producing this thoughtful piece which captures the essence of our Townhead re-engagement and Pollok Grows Together projects so eloquently. To find out more about David and his work, head to: https://davidhughesstoryteller.com/